Bloodlines and Family Friends
by Navaer
Summary: The daughter of a friend from Nick's past shows up at the lab, asking Nick for a favor. What she asks results in many things, some good, some bad. But it will change both their lives forever. Last chapter is up.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I don't own CSI... the usual. Btw, for those of you who've been reading my other fanfics: Their Days in High School, and The Beginning or the End? I AM working on those, too! Hope you like this.**

* * *

"Hi," a tall, slender teenage girl stood in front of the information desk in the Las Vegas Crime Lab. She smiled, some of her dark brown hair falling in front of her eyes. Shoving it back behind her ear, the girl continued, "I'm looking for Nick Stokes..." She bit her lip, nervously.

"He's out in the field, I think," the lady at the desk answered. She was short, with a friendly looking face. The girl relaxed.

"Um, okay," she said. "I'll just wait here..." She nodded, thanking the woman, and turned around to sit in one of the chairs on the opposite wall. _Jesus, _she thought. _How am I gonna ask him?_

* * *

Just as Nick was getting back from processing the home of a homicide victim, the loudspeaker came on, "Nick Stokes, you have a visitor at the main desk." He felt chills run up his spine. The last visitor he'd had at the lab had been the daughter of the man who'd kidnapped him a little over a year ago. Calming himself, he walked to the main entrance.

The woman at the desk pointed in the direction of a young girl with dark hair and a determined face. She got up as soon as Nick saw her.

"Mr. Stokes?" she asked shyly, the determined look on her face not changing. He nodded. "I'm Ashley..." she paused, as if not sure to share anything else.

Nick thought for a moment, wondering if he'd seen Ashley before. She reminded him of someone he knew a while back, but couldn't think of whom. "Hi, you can call me Nick." He held his hand out, and she shook it. "How can I help you?"

"Well," the girl said. "I don't know if you know, but my mother was murdered about a month ago..." Nick cocked his head, showing he didn't know. "My mom was Eileen Taylor. I assumed you two knew each other. Your name was the only one on her will besides mine."

"Wow," Nick's eyes widened. He saw a flash of a memory: a beautiful, blonde woman with blue eyes much like Ashley's. He heard laughter, and suddenly felt a touch on his arm. He looked down, and saw a small hand. Ashley was standing there, trying to comfort a man she'd never known.

Quietly, she whispered, "I'm sorry... I guess you two knew each other better than I thought." She took her hand back, and looked away.

"Ashley... why did you come here?" Nick asked. He was curious at what had happened, but was pained to think back to his and Eileen's friendship. It had lasted a couple years, and then he'd moved, and they'd never really kept touch. He hadn't imagined after sixteen years, that he would still remember her so well. And yet, he knew he couldn't forget her. _Did she know I live in Vegas?_ He wondered, swallowing back the pain.

"I...," Ashley began. She wasn't quite sure how to ask him. "I came to ask you a favor. Well... and I came to tell you about my mom... she's the main reason I came."

Confused, Nick asked, "What is it?"

"I need you to take a DNA sample from me. And then I need you to run it through the database. See if you can get any partial matches," Ashley stated, without hesitation this time. She saw Nick make a strange face, and added, "If it's going to cost money, I have five hundred dollars with me. It's from birthdays and Christmases over the years..." She knew it sounded strange. How had she gotten this much money? But she also knew that she looked like, and was an honest person. She just hoped Nick would believe her.

"Why?" Nick asked, bewildered. The girl sounded anxious, almost scared.

"I want to find my father," was all Ashley answered with.

**TBC**

**A/N: How was it? I plan to put the second chapter up very soon! I'm almost done with it. Should I continue?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Well, Bressom asked for it. Here it is:**

* * *

"Okay, Ashley," Nick said, sitting across from her in the break room. He didn't have an office, and he hadn't wanted everyone to hear the conversation, so he'd brought her here. "What makes you think we'd be able to find your father?" he asked.

Ashley smiled slightly, and responded, "Mr. Stokes... my mom and I didn't get along so well. We got in fights alot, and sometimes could go for days without talking." Nick looked at her, unsure what that had to do with anything. Sighing, the girl continued, "One of those fights, probably last year, was about my father. I screamed at her about stuff..."

"_Why can't I know him?" Ashley shreieked at Eileen, blue eyes icy with anger._

"_You don't understand, Ash," the older woman yelled back, throwing her hands in the air. "You can't know how it _feels_ for me not to have him in ourlives! I want him here more than anyone."_

"_So why isn't he? Does he even_ know _about me? I mean, are you even sure who my dad is? Maybe I'm just a mistake! What? Did you have a one night stand with a guy and then get dumped?" Ashley's voice was full of hatred, and her matched it._

"_If you want to find him, do it yourself! I don't know where he is, if you really want to know, check the damn system!" Eileen threw her hands up again, and stormed out of the room._

"I assumed that she meant the criminal system," Ashley muttered. "You might judge me, but I don't care. I just want to know who my father is. If he's a murderer or something, well, like hell I'd want to meet him... I just want to see what he looks like..."

"You want a face instead of a shadow," Nick reasoned. Ashley nodded. "But... why now? Why didn't you when Eileen told you that?" He was curious, and yet thought he understood.

"I lost Mom," Ashley stated. "I just thought, maybe I wouldn't have to lose both of them... I know it sounds weird. But I just need to know. Mr. Stokes, do you mind me asking... have you ever had a close relative die? I mean who you were really close to?"

Nick thought for a moment, before answering with, "Yeah I have. I wasn't as young as you are, but my grandfather died when I was in college. You could say we were close. But my siblings and parents are all alive." He admitted, feeling even worse for Ashley. It hurt him, for Eileen to be dead, but he couldn't imagine how it must feel to her daughter. "A coworker of mine was nearly killed," he offered. "I haven't known him as long as some of us have, but we were friends."

He'd been troubled when he thought about Brass's close call less than a couple weeks ago. Last year, when he thought about his kidnapping, he'd decided it may have been best for him to be the victim. As much torture it was to him, he wondered how it was to be one of his friends: to see him in pain, and not be able to stop it.

"Are you okay?" Ashley's voice brought him back to the present. He'd been shaking.

"Sorry... yeah," Nick said, embarrassed. He hated the memory of the grave... and how it still affected him so much, more than twelve months later. "Ashley... I'd understand if you didn't want to, but I knew your mom, and I was wondering—"

"If you could know what happened," Ashley finished for him. He smiled a little, and nodded. "It's fine Mr. Stokes, I've told cops more times than I care to remember. Anyway, she was killed during a burglary of our house. The thing is, I remember more of what happened before... you see, I wasn't even in the room when she was killed." She stopped, shuddering, a small tear trickling down her cheek.

"It's okay if you don't want to," Nick said quietly.

Ashley shook her head, and Nick understood why he'd gotten the gist that she was a determined girl. "No, you deserve to know what happened. I mean, you probably knew her better than I let myself know her... at least I didn't since I was probably ten. When I was little, I'd just pretend I had a dad." She laughed sarcastically. "Most kids have little imaginary friends to have tea parties with... my imaginary friend was my dad. He would supposedly read me fairy tales and tuck me into bed at night. Sometimes, I'd even leave the covers down all night, praying he would actually come and pull them up. Obviously he never did.

"Anyway, as I got older, I forgot about my dad, but I kinda just grew apart from Mom. I always told her how I thought if I ran away, that she wouldn't give a damn, and she would just adopt a "perfect" daughter, and go find a husband. I sort of think she didn't keep many boyfriends because of me, because I was too attached to the idea of my dad still being out in the world, waiting for Mom and me..." Ashley took a slow breath, before starting on the night of the murder.

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, so yeah, I had some questions from "G". I don't exactly remember if we're aloud to answer questions... i thought i read somewhere that we're not, but oh well. So, for your questions: 1. & 2. You'll have to wait for. Sorry. :) 3. Well, that's a little connected with 1. but I'm just breaking the rules I guess. 4. I'll admit I'm not all-knowing about this legal stuff, but how I wanted it to be was that Ashley wanted to go herself. Let's just pretend she gets what she wants. 5. She got the hint to check "the system" from her Mom, in the second chapter. There's stuff on television shows and in other places, about how you get part of your DNA from each parent or however you say it. Anyway, I hope it helps a little, but I can't answer everything. Here's the next chap...**

* * *

"_So can I go to the mall tomorrow, with Mel and Katie?" Ashley asked her mother cheerfully. They were eating dinner in a small, colorful kitchen. The fading light of the setting sun streamed through a large window above the sink._

"_I dunno Ash," Eileen muttered, pouring herself another glass of water. "I need to run some errands and it'd be really helpful if you could come with me—"_

"_Why Mom?" Ashley pressed. _

_Eileen smiled apologetically and answered, "I need you to help me with chores tomorrow. After we clean the house and run errands, we can get some icecream. If you really want to, I guess we could go to a movie." She looked hopefully at Ashley, who wasn't smiling._

"_But Mom, why can't I do chores and then go with my _friends_? Why do you even want to spend time with me? Most parents love to get rid of their kids, atleast my friends' parents," Ashley commented bluntly. _

"_Ash," Eileen suddenly looked tired, and breathed in slowly before she answered. "I know you and I haven't always gotten along, but atleast we can try to talk to each other."_

_Ashley rolled her eyes, "God Mom, I don't _hate _you." Eileen cringed at the word, like a frightened animal. Ashley's hard eyes softened, and she smiled, "Okay, I guess I'll do it... it's not like Melanie and Katie actually _want _me to come." She sighed, and her mother understood why she had wanted to go so badly. _

"Why'd you say that?" Nick asked, feeling worse about not being there for Eileen. She'd seemed so worn out, older than she was.

Ashley answered, without hesitation, "I'm not exactly popular in school. I'm a science geek, and actually it was really strange that I was invited to go to the mall. I suppose it was probably a prank, anyway." Nick laughed, and Ashley looked at him, horrified.

"Sorry," Nick said. "It's just that I wasn't popular either. The only way people probably knew that I existed was because I played sports. Believe me, I'm glad I wasn't popular. Of course I didn't like it then, but now I realize that I wouldn't be here. My friends here are my family, and better friends than any I 'had' in high school." He smiled, and was pleased that the girl followed suit.

"Hey Nicky," Catherine's voice suddenly appeared, and Nick looked up to see the red-blonde haired woman standing in the doorway, holding a Styrofoam coffee cup. She looked questioningly at Ashley then at Nick.

Nick smiled, "Sorry, Cath, this is Ashley Taylor. She's the daughter of one of my friends awhile back." Catherine still looked confused at why the girl was in the break room.

Ashley laughed a little, and then answered Catherine's look, "My mom was murdered recently, and I'm just here to tell Mr. Stokes."

"It's Nick," Nick muttered, and watched Catherine's face. She nodded, but still stood in the doorway, taking in the scene before her. Ashley's hair was dark, and Catherine imagined that if it was cut like a boy's, it would mirror Nick's exactly. The girl seemed tall, and she even had the same skin tone as Nick. Shaking herself mentally, Catherine walked over to the coffee pot and filled her cup.

* * *

When Catherine left, Nick turned to Ashley, to let her continue. The girl sighed, "Anyway, Mom and I went to our rooms afterward. I assumed she was working. She had a job at a jewelry store, and a waitress thing. I guess she was doing some online thing, too... but I didn't see her the rest of the night... until _they _came."

_A large BANG woke a sleeping Ashley, and she sat up in her bed, frigtened. She held her knees close to her, listening. She could hear footsteps in the living room, and they sounded like they were running around the room. She also heard faint whispers, but couldn't make out the words._

_Too scared to see what was going on, Ashley stayed curled up for a little while, until the footsteps grew closer. _

"_What's this?" a man's voice whispered, right outside Ashley's bedroom. Her eyes widened, she knew they must be talking about the painted sign that she'd made, which said "Ashley's Room" in colorful caligraphy. Blood growing cold, Ashley tried to think of a place to hide. Her closet was on the other side of the room, and the man would know she was there. There was no room under her bed, but it was too late, anyway._

"_Why, hello," another man's voice said, as he and his 'partner in crime' burst into the room. Ashley whimpered. "Oh, shush. Look, James, she's a pretty girl ain't she?" He walked over to Ashley, touching her face with a worn hand. The girl moved her head, getting away from his hand and the smell of alchohol that was on his breath. The man slapped her. "Now, that's not very nice. I gave you a compliment. I like you, you know..." He grinned, reaching his hands toward her chest. Ashley backed away, hitting the wall with her back. _

"_C'mon Dan, I think she's just shy," the man called James said from the door. "It's okay little girl, we just want to be friendly." Dan smiled, nodding, and forced her down, while James came over, and reached toward her pants.._

Suddenly, Ashley stopped talking. She was shaking violently, tears falling down her cheeks continuously. Nick was looking emotional, too. He knew how Ashley felt. He'd known the feeling ever since he was nine years old... since the babysitter.

Putting a hand on Ashley's shoulder, Nick said softly, "You can stop. It's okay." Ashley shook her head, still crying.

"I'm... okay," Ashley said. "I've told it before. Well... you know what happened. But then Mom came in... and she fought them off."

"_Ashley!" Eileen screamed, as she saw the scene going on in her daughter's bedroom. One man was holding the girl down, and she was crying, holding the top of her pajama bottoms tightly, up at her waist. Another man was zipping the fly of his jeans, a sickening grin upon his face._

"_Mom!" Ashley cried out. _

"_Shut up bitch!" James hit the girl, and she fell silent._

_Eileen looked at her daughter, and said, "Run Ashley!" Without hesitation, the girl obeyed, while her mother sheilded the way. _

_As Ashley ran out of the house, screaming for help, she heard a gunshot._

"I was so scared," Ashley said, her tears slowly stopping. She looked up at Nick, and was surprised to she that he'd been crying, too. Only she didn't know he had other reasons that he was emotional. At the sight of his tear-stained face, Ashley sobbed again. Nick shook, unable to control himself. He allowed Ashley to cling onto him, feeling guilty that the girl had to go through so much pain. And now she was alone in the world, and Eileen was gone.

"Shh," Nick said, he hugged her, almost feeling like he had Eileen back. "Shh, it's okay. You're gonna be okay..." After a few moments, Ashley sat up, wiping the tears from her eyes, and looking embarrased.

She smiled, her eyes still red and puffy, "Sorry..."

Nick mirrored her smile, and responded, "Don' worry about it. I know it's tough. I shouldn't have made you go through that again... maybe you should come back another time... But I'll take a DNA sample from you if you're sure you want one."

"No... I want to do this," she wiped her eyes one last time, and she looked at him. "I'm sure."

"Okay... I'll be right back," Nick said, nervous about what he was going to do. He knew he might get in trouble for this, but he also knew he owed Eileen. He could atleast help her daughter.

* * *

**A/N: So if you didn't know, I changed the rating, because of this chapter. I know it might make some people uncomfortable. **

**Okay, ya'll, I appriciated Bressom and G for reviewing. And seriously, if you compliment or insult me, it's fine. We can all use constructive critisizm. Share the love: D-Carrie**


	4. Chapter 4

**Okay, well it might take a couple days to load the 5th chapter. Sorry, but i have band and stuff for most of the day so i'm gonna be busy. thought i have only gotten 4 comments, thanks to you lovely people who are so nice that you share your feelings about my writing. Love ya guys:D but i usually don't get reviews the day i put up the chapter! it makes me happy! okay, i hope ya'll like this:**

* * *

A couple minutes after Nick left, Warrick Brown came into the break room to get some coffee. He was pulling a double, and knew he was tired, but when he saw a young girl sitting at the table, staring into space, he assumed he was more tired than he thought.

"Hi there," he said to the girl. Ashley looked up at him. _Holy_, Warrick thought. "Um... can I help you?"

"I'm fine," Ashley stated, looking away again. Warrick was surprised at the comment, seeing as she must be a visitor and wondering why she'd be in the break room.

Warrick watched her for a few moments, before deciding to ask, "Are you from Nick's family or something?"

"No," Ashley laughed. Nick and she had brown hair, but they didn't look _that_ much alike! "I'm visiting Nick if that's what you mean..."

"Oh," Warrick nodded. "Does he know you're here?" Ashley nodded, which made Warrick even more puzzeled. He shrugged and got his coffee, grinning to himself because he'd taken some of the Blue Hawaiian. As he was leaving, Nick entered the room again. "Hey," Warrick said as the two men passed. Nick nodded in greeting.

"Okay Ashley," Nick said, sitting down. The girl nodded, and opened her mouth. Nick swabed it and closed the top, before asking, "Do you need a ride home? I mean..." Ashley had flinched at the comment. He guessed that she'd been moved to foster care, but mentally slapped himself for not coming to the conclusion sooner.

Ashley shook her head, "I'll catch a bus..."

Nick shook his head, "No, I don't think I should let you ride a bus this late. It's Vegas. Can you call someone?"

Ashley thought for a moment, and then answered, "Yeah, I'll call... um, thanks." Nick nodded, giving her an encouraging smile.

"I'll call you when we get results," he said, getting up again. Ashley followed suite and smiled before leaving. Watching her walk away, Nick remained standing in the break room, his heart aching for the young woman.

* * *

"_Nick," Eileen Taylor gasped. Her friend was standing outside of her small apartment. The twenty-four year old man smiled apologetically. _

"_I know it's late," he said. "I've just been thinking... about what you said. And... I think. No. I _know_ I feel the same way." Eileen looked confused._

_She responded, "But you said..."_

"_I know," Nick nodded. "I am worried about how it will turn out. You're one of my closest friends, and I'm afraid I'll hurt you...what if we can't be as close? But if you want to risk it, I'll risk it, too." He stepped into her apartment, and planted a deep kiss on her lips. They continued to kiss, Nick pulled off his jacket, and they helped each other take of their shirts, as they made their way down the hall to the bedroom..._

Nick woke up all of a sudden. He was sweating, and he had to stop thinking for a moment, to calm himself down. He looked around, not remembering where he was.

Slowly, it came to him. He was in his bed, in his house, in Las Vegas. No one was with him... and he remembered. Eileen Taylor was dead. He hadn't seen her in years... it was a dream.

But Nick knew better than that. It wasn't just a dream. It had been a memory, of one of the last times he'd seen Eileen. He shuddered, remembering their final goodbye.

"_I'm sorry," Nick said, his heart aching as he watched Eileen's teary eyed face. She looked down. He closed his eyes, and wrapped his arms around her. Resting his chin on her head, he breathed, "I'm so sorry, baby. I just have to go."_

_Eileen pulled back, muttering, "I know... it's just... I've been so happy the past couple weeks. I just kept telling myself it was too good to be true."_

"_No," Nick said, pulling her back to him. "It _was _true. I still love you Eileen. It just has to be this way." _

"_I know," she said, sobbing. "I just wish it wasn't now... I wish it could've been years from now... just anytime but now."_

_Nick shook his head, "You know it would've been harder then. Just remember to call me if you ever need to." He kissed the top of her head, and let go, picking up his carry-on and turning to the boarding gate._

"_Goodbye Nicky," Eileen waved, smiling through her tears._

"God you bastard!" Nick burst out to the dark room. "You could've called her yourself! But you didn't think about her for fourteen damn years! And now she's dead!" He wanted to hit himself. Instead, he got out of his bed, grabbed his running shoes and threw on a T-shirt and shorts. He locked his door behind him as he began to jog.

He ran around his entire neighborhood twice before he stopped back at his house. Unable to go to sleep again, he fixed himself some coffee and began making breakfast. TBC...

* * *

**so how was it?**


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, so I lied. It took me more than a couple days. Sorry, but anyway. Dundundun. Here's the next chappie:**

While eating the pancakes he'd made, Nick picked up the newspaper. Startled by one of the pictures and captions, Nick checked the date. It was nearly a month ago. His heart racing, he glanced back at the picture. It was of Eileen Taylor, though she did look older than Nick remembered her, but that was to be expected. There was another picture, of a body bag being taken on a stretcher from the entrance of an apartment on the first level. There was crime scene tape over the door.

Suddenly, his cell phone rang. Throwing down the paper, he answered it, "Stokes."

"Nick, hey it's Greg," the voice on the other line said. "I got the test results for Ashley Taylor."

"Oh.. okay, um, I'll ask her if she can come to the lab today," Nick half-muttered.

Greg answered hurriedly, "Actually, I think you should come down here a bit early."

"Why?" Nick started to ask, but Greg had hung up. Feeling a lump in his throat, Nick put away the rest of his breakfast for leftovers, and took a shower before getting ready for work.

Meanwhile, Ashley was sitting on her bed in her foster room. She looked around the cheerful room, glaring at the brightly colored walls and the tons of stuffed animals that were there for the young children who usually stayed there. The only thing in her room that made her smile, was an old picture of her and Eileen. It was taken when Ashley was just a baby, and when Eileen was still an energetic young woman. The thought of her mother being any happier than what she had been most of the recent years, made Ashley sad, but she was glad to know that her mother had known a good life with Ashley.

Tired of sitting and doing nothing, Ashley suddenly stood up, off her bed. She rushed down to the kitchen. Her foster parent's were there, cooking dinner and working on some paperwork. The couple's two biological children, were in the living room watching television. Feeling a wave of jealousy come over her, Ashley looked away from the scene before her. _It's not fair_, she thought, breathing out heavily, before turning back.

"Can I go to the library?" she asked. At first, she thought she hadn't spoken aloud, because no one was paying attention to her. She cleared her throat to make sure. Her foster dad looked up.

"Sure," he said. "You want a ride?" Ashley shook her head, waved goodbye, and headed out.

"Okay, Sanders," Nick announced, as he walked into the lab. Secretly, he was scared to know what Greg had found out. But for now, he was just thankful that Greg was breaking the rules for him. "What'd ya find?" he asked, smiling weakly, his nerves showing on his face, no matter how much he thought he was hiding them.

"If I get caught..." Greg muttered. "I'm not even the lab tech anymore, you know." Though he was nervous, this made Nick smile. All the CSIs were proud of Greg. Even though he'd been a CSI for over a year, the guy still took any opportunity he could to brag about it. If it had been anyone like Ecklie, Nick was sure someone would have shut the guy up by now, but this was Greg.

Nick laughed, "Okay Mr. Still Big CSI man. I get it, but will you please show me the results?"

"Um... are you sure?" Greg seemed more nervous that even Nick.

"C'mon man, I'm a big boy. I can handle it," Nick smiled, just praying that the results were good for Ashley. Greg reluctantly handed two sheets of paper to his friend. Nick raised his eyebrows at what was on the papers. This would change things.

Ashley sat on a bus bench on the side of the highway, feeling sorry for the kids who's parents were around to stop them from doing basically anything. If she'd really wanted to, she knew that she could get away with drinking and drugs, by just pretending she was going somewhere good. Her foster parents would never expect it. Besides, why would they even care? It's not like she meant anything to anyone anymore. Her mom was gone, she had no father, no friends, and lived in a house that she was the only person not related to anyone. _Now how would I get the alchohol? _She thought to herself. She was half joking, though she'd always wondered how it would feel to get drunk. The only alchohol she'd ever been allowed was a few sips of champagne last New Year's. _It's not like I have anything to look forward to, _she argued. Maybe she should try to get into something... but, she wasn't an idiot.

"Don't do it, Ashley," she spoke aloud. "Don't be stupid." Smiling, and relaxing for the first time in several days, she got up and started to walk in the direction of the foster house. As she was about to head into her neighborhood, her foster dad's SUV drove up to her.

"Get in Ashley," he said once he'd rolled down the window. She obeyed, and climbed into the passenger seat beside him. "Anna and I know what you did." He said sternly, referring to her foster mother. Ashley, confused, gave a questioning look. The man sighed, and answered, "Nick Stokes from the Las Vegas Crime Lab called the house to tell you they found a match. I can't believe you, Ashley." He shook his head, as if dissappointed in her.

Bewildered, Ashley asked, "What? What'd I do? I'm sorry for not telling you, atleast I told you I was going to talk to him. I needed to." She pleaded with her eyes, hoping he'd understand.

"Ashley," he said, while driving up to the house. "We know you needed some closure, but why would you do this? This man risked his, and I'm sure other people's careers! I know this can't have been legal! Why would you want to do that to them?"

"Because I need to know who my father is!" Ashley opened the door as soon as the SUV was parked. "I don't expect _you _to understand!" She stormed into the house, running up to her room without even glancing at Anna and the two children who were staring at her in shock.

After a long hour of pouring out her heart in the form of tears, Ashley picked up the phone and called the operator. She connected Ashley to the Crime Lab, and when the woman at the front desk answered, Ashley asked for Nick Stokes. He was out in the field again, so she left a call back number and hung up. She stood up and started pacing, almost shaking from her nerves. She'd never had anyone to suspect of being her father, and she was about to find out who he was. How would she react? How would he?

**TBC...**

**Okay, so the drinking/drugs thing was kinda random. But I just threw it in to show she wasn't all about the father thing. Well, so how are you liking it?**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: So.. it's been awhile! Well.. I've had a little trouble with time and a brain to write with. But here it is!**

When Nick arrived back at the lab, after he'd given Greg some hair and skin samples he'd found at a new crime scene, he checked by Grissom's office. Gil was there. _Well, _Nick thought, _it's time to tell him. _

"Gris? Can I talk to you for a minute?" Nick asked, knocking softly on the door to announce his presence. The other man looked up from his work and nodded Nick in.

"What is it?" he asked curiously. Nick looked a bit ruffled.

_C'mon Nick, look at yourself. You're the adult in this situation! You shouldn't be the one who's too afraid. _Calmly, Nick said, "I just found out something that I need time to sort out. I thought you should know what it is, though, just so I'm not keeping it a secret."

"And?" Grissom raised an eyebrow questioningly. "Nick, what is it?"

Nick sighed, and then spat it out. "I have a daughter."

* * *

"Ashley?" a voice appeared behind her, as she walked towards the front doors of the crime lab. She whirled around, shaking from nerves.

"Hi… Warrick?" she asked tentatively.

He smiled, "Yeah. Are you here to see Nick?"

"Uh-huh," Ashley nodded. The two entered together, and Warrick pointed towards Grissom's office, where he could see the boss talking to Nick quietly.

"Hello," Ashley said, almost in a whisper. She was terrified to be standing there, with her father, a man that she had only met a couple days ago. Grissom stared at her, his blue eyes seemed piercing to her, making her shiver. She looked towards Nick, hoping that he could make her feel more comfortable, but it only made her feel nauseous. She turned back to Grissom.

"I'm Ashley Taylor," she threw it out, still scared of this man's eyes. Grissom nodded, and shook her hand which was outstretched.

"Gil Grissom," he responded. "It's very nice to meet you, Ashley." He threw a glance at Nick, who gulped, feeling awkward again. Grissom turned back to the girl, "Ashley, I think you and Mr. Stokes need to talk. But, I suggest you do so with your foster parents. Nick has the rest of the day off, and I'm suggesting you take that time to talk to them. Okay?" He was talking to both of them. Nick half smiled, more wincing than anything, and walked Ashley and himself out of the crime lab.

* * *

"Anna? Sam? I'm back!" Ashley yelled to the seemingly empty house. She heard movement in the kitchen, and led Nick to it. Anna was rolling cookie dough with her youngest child, a bright-eyed boy who grinned at Ashley when she entered.

"Hey Toby," she said to the boy. He turned to Nick, eyes wide with curiosity at this stranger.

"Whoa," Anna cried out softly, as she turned and saw Nick. She was only used to one person in the house taller than her. But, her husband wasn't home. Then she remembered the man Ashley had talked about. There was only one reason that he would be at Ashley's home. "Well, Mr. Stokes, we'd better get to talking."

**Author's Note: yeah.. kinda short. But I've started the next chapter if that makes it better.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I am apologizing to everyone because I've first off deleted one of my stories "Their Days in High School" partly because I feel like it's over and because I can't see myself finishing it because like I said I feel that it's over. And I will post it again if I decide to continue it. Also, I'm sorry that I'm ending this when I posted this not as the last chapter. This too, I feel is over. I'm apologizing to those of you who waited and are still waiting for continuations of these stories. But here you are:**

After an hour of talking, Ashley excused herself, so that she could get the kids a snack, leaving Anna and Nick to talk.

After Toby finished his juice, Ashley let him go and snuck up to her room. All this new information was leaving her nauseous and dizzy. _Holy shit. I have a father. _Trying to calm herself, she put Keane on her CD player. Slowly, she fell asleep.

* * *

"Thank you Mrs. Patterson," Nick smiled and shook Anna's hand. 

She nodded, and said, "You're a very nice man. It's just so amazing that Ashley found you. She's had some tough times since we took her. I think it's wonderful that you're here now. You can go say bye to her if you want." Nick nodded. "Second room on the right." He thanked her and then headed up the staircase.

Nick quietly knocked on the door, but seeing it was opened slightly, he peeked in. Ashley was asleep, with her arms folded and her hair spread across her pillow. He smiled at her gentle smile displayed on her lips.

"My little angel," he whispered. He left the room, his heart filled with a joy he rarely felt.

"Bye... Daddy," Ashley whispered back.


End file.
